Counting Stars
by earlgreyqueen
Summary: Jean Kirshtein - your typical college soccer guy meets the quiet & biology loving Armin. An unlikely couple matched through unfortunate fate of the coffee shop & Jean's inability to keep it in his pants for a second.
1. Chapter 1

The stadium erupted in chaos, as cheers echoed through the compact building. A whir of colours flashed through the crowd as the commentator's voice congratulated the winners, Team Kyojin, for yet another win. A gloved hand punched the goal post angrily, as sweat dripped lazily down his cheeks. _Again_. Fuckin' again.

A freckled boy came running up, a grin adoring his face despite their loss. Grass stained his white shorts, making his legs look incredibly tan in comparison.

"Come on, Jean! It's just a game." Defiant eyes met those of a much gentler and Jean felt a heavy sigh emit from his throat.

"Ugh, fine. C'mon, let's get out of here before I feel like more a loser." Marco laughed lightly in response, earning a short smirk to appear on Jean's lips as he strolled back into the building, away from the harsh lighting and ear deafening celebration of their loss. Peeling off his shirt, Jean felt the usual rant come upon him as the sticky sweat reminded him of their failure. Stepping into the shower, he blasted up the hot water, glancing over to Marco who was doing the exact thing in the opposing cubicle. Despite Marco having his eyes shut, Jean knew he was already waiting to listen to hear the profanities and excuses that Jean would sulk about.

"Y'know, we should have fucking won that game. If Connie stopped complaining for one moment about how he couldn't fit into whatever bromance Reiner and Berthold have, and instead taken control when the ball was near him, then the outcome would have totally been different. And defence, like fuck me, what sort of defence was that?! I swear if we freakin' loose again to Kyojin I'm going to fuck up that, Jaegar. Did you see that look, Marco! Did you? He totally thinks we suck and ugh...that douche bag is so annoying." Jean growled as he massaged the shampoo into his scalp, washing away the grime and irritability.

Marco just chuckled lightly as he watched fondly as Jean's face screwed up unattractively. "Hey Jean, we're going out after this, want to come? It's only to the college coffee shop but I think everyone wanted to unwind before the next game. We need to work on our tactics."

Opening an eye to grab his towel, Jean shut the water off as he wrapped the material around his hips.  
"Sure, man. Maybe there will be some cute girls there. I need to get laid." The teen strolled over to his locker, roughly pulling on some jeans and a plain hoodie. Marco followed suit, eyes glued to the floor politely. Once they were done, Jean checked his appearance one last time, grinning lewdly at his reflection. He was the fucking bomb; he was definitely going to pull sometime soon.

* * *

The jingling of the bell sounded as the coffee shop door opened, the scent of coffee smacking Jean in the face. Talk about being subtle. Pulling his hood down as Marco scoured the shop for their friends; Jean looked around for any possible "victims". Eheh. This sly fox was going to get his vixen tonight. A familiar face jumped up, his cropped hair making him look bald in this lighting, which amused Jean to no end.  
"Marco, Jean! Over here!"

The two walked over, noticing Annie had joined the table, her gaze else-where. The blonde was...intimidating. Jean gulped quietly, hoping she wouldn't make any sudden movements; her aura not being anything comforting. Seizing the opportunity to escape already, Jean nudged Marco in the side.

"Oi, I'm going off to order. What do you want?"

"Tea; I'll pay you back when we get to the dorm." The freckled young man smiled softly, graciously taking the nearest chair as Connie began to recall one of his "famous" stories. Checking that he did indeed have money, Jean made his way over to the counter, glancing up at the blackboard at the possible options. The queue was moving steadily, giving Jean time to make the important decision of, "what-drink-can-I-actually-pronounce-whilst-still-looking-cool."

"Hello, can I take your order please?" A light voice rung out from deep within his thoughts, causing Jean to come back down to reality and realise he was now at the front of the queue. A flush rushed across his cheeks as he looked down at his server, a petite blonde smiling up at him. Blue eyes gazed innocently upwards which was complimented by the blonde bob adoring their face, fringe scruffy from constantly being pushed back due to steam and hot drinks. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.

"Um...excuse me. You do want to order, right?"

"T-Tea! Yeah...um yeah. Tea." Jean grinned awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his undercut, trying to control whatever creature had a grasp of his heart. Nodding, the blonde server turned around, beginning to boil the water and get the preparations ready. Casting his eyes down, Jean couldn't help but admire the soft shoulders, leading down to a delicate back and what would presumably be a curved ass. Feeling his pants begin to tighten, Jean exhaled shakily. Was it him, or was it really stupidly fucking hot in here?!

The blonde turned, facing Jean again as they passed over the drink, slender fingers brushing accidentally against those of his. The sudden contact made Jean's chest lurch and was his imagination, or did he see blondie's cheeks pinken? Fumbling for the money in his back pocket, Jean brought out the correct amount of coins, placing them on the wooden counter. _Get her number._ Blondie picked up the coins, depositing them into the till. _Get her number_. Blondie smiled briefly at Jean, azure eyes sparkling in the low light. _Get her number_. Jean opened his mouth before being rudely shoved forward by the next customer, who was obviously not appreciating how long the brat was being. Blondie quickly began to serve the next person and Jean's mouth dropped slightly in disappointment as he realised the missed opportunity.

Grabbing the drink he quickly approached the table, freezing when he realised he hadn't even ordered his own drink. Fucking Marco's. Growling he collapsed onto a chair, ungratefully slamming the drink in front of his best friend as he face-desked the wooden table. Fuck.

"Jean...you okay?" Marco's worried voice could be heard but the man decided to ignore him, instead focusing on the cutie that served him.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow he would come back and order. Tomorrow he would come back, order and get her name and number.

After all, he was the bomb. Eheh.

* * *

Armin poured coffee after coffee for grumpy business men and women, they all wore the same expression and didn't thank him.

He was sweaty and hot. He wanted to tie his hair up but every time he went to, Sasha would spin him round to serve another customer. He served a mother with 3 screaming children giving them small gingerbreads to shut them up.

The smell of coffee mixed with the heat had given him a headache and he was starting to force his smile. When he heard the bell ring again and the soccer team yell his head ached; he made a soft noise and served the mother, smiling sweetly.

He looked up again to be faced with a handsome boy; he immediately recognized him from the soccer team. Jean Kirchstein or something like that. He frowned a little, racking his brains; he shook his head and smiled.

"Hello, can I take your order please?" Armin smiled through his headache and watched Jean, the boy seemed enchanted with his face and stared intently, it was making him uncomfortable and he asked again warily.

Jean finally managed to stutter out an answer along with a awkward grin that made him look pained. The blonde nodded and turned around, sorting out the teenagers order. Sasha was chatting loudly to everyone and his brain pounded more.

He added sugar cubes and a complimentary Christmas biscuit and handed it to Jean, their fingers brushing, his cheeks flushed at the contact. Jeans fingers were cool and Armin wanted the cool to sooth his forehead. However instead he quickly took the money and Jean opened his mouth to say more, but soon got pushed along by Levi. Armin smiled weakly and got his regular takeaway order; he could feel Jeans eyes watching him and he couldn't wait for his shift to end.

* * *

Armin pushed open the door to his shared apartment and said a quiet 'Hello". Mikasa poked her head around the corner and handed him two paracetamols and a cup of tea.

"Dinners ready when you want it~" She smiled.

"I've got homework so I'll take it with me" Armin smiled back and took his pills, he always felt better at home; it was clean and didn't hurt his brain like the coffee shop did. He took his plate of vegetarian whatever Mikasa had made him and pushed Erens door open, sitting on the sofa with Eren who seemed to be absorbed with the xBox.

"How was work?" Eren didn't even look at Armin, he braced himself for the whining about how shit Armin's job was.

"It was horrible; again we had like seven hundred grumpy business people followed by mums with screaming children." Armin took a break to stuff a fork full of food into his mouth and continued talking "My head hurt already and coffee just gives me the worst pain ever, and then the soccer team came in and were all yelling about how the other team and Connie was yelling stuff at Sasha and Sasha was screaming back and it all got too much to be honest, and then Jean Kirchstein-"

"Horse boy?" Eren looked at him "Ugly dude, stupid hair cut?"

"Uh, yeah I guess?"

"Ugh, I hate that dude; he hates our team because we always beat them." Eren growled and took his game off pause.

"Anyway, he came in and was staring at me and making me uncomfortable, I'm having a bad day anyway and I'm just not in the mood to be stared at like some piece of meat, but I put on this stupid forced smile and served him and Sasha said he was staring at my butt, like wow, is he gay? And he stared at me till they left and I've just been pissed off since then." Armin took a deep breath and smiled.

Eren wasn't even looking at him and took a swig of his glass of coke.

"Eren, you're such a good listener, you don't complain when I talk to you, you just sit there and listen" Armin smiled and ate another mouthful; he felt better being too naïve to even notice Eren wasn't listening.

* * *

Armin lay in the bath and stared at the ceiling, his mind was wandering to the handsome boy and he bit his lip, was Jean Kirchstein actually interested or was he being dared to pull him along. He sighed and created bubbles in the water before he heard a knock at the door.

"Yeah?"

"Night Armin, make sure you go to bed early, you have college tomorrow." Mikasa's voice rang through the door

"Oh yeah of course, night Mikasa~" Armin smiled and sighed softly, sinking under the water, he opened his eyes and breathed out. He felt tired and his brain was confused. It wasn't often he was confused but he was when it came to Jean - he sat up again and slicked his hair back; he didn't even want to be in a relationship, school was more important than a boyfriend! He nodded and scolded himself quietly.

He knew he was blowing it out of proportion and it was just his mind. He scowled as he dried himself off - he was good at science, not good at boyfriends and kissing and uh... Sex.

Armin shook his head and unlocked the door, going to his small room and closed the door, he just wanted to sleep now and flopped down on his bed, not even bothering to do anything with his hair and he fell asleep quickly.

He'd worry about it tomorrow.

* * *

**OKAY GUYS SO NEW FIC HELL SHYEAH**

**This baby is a shared fic wow, my lovely Jean is LeatherAnd-Chocolate (i luv u bby)**

**so yes, we're such nerds but wow, we hope you like this and it's now yours to treasure **

**x LeatherAnd-Chocolate x xEarlGreyQueen x**


	2. Chapter 2

Stalker.

The words haunted Jean slightly, after Marco had apparently pointed out that said boys actions were being creepy. He exhaled deeply, closing his eyes as he went back to remembering his beautiful coffee "dates". It had become a habit that the teen would visit the campus' coffee shop purely to see that blonde cutie – however it was unfortunate in the factor that because he became such a regular – he was associated with drinking tea. Not like there was necessarily any problems with drinking tea, but when attempting to impress a girl, the last thing Jean wanted was to look like the loser kid who drank tea because they were too much of a wimp to handle coffee. And Hell, could Jean drink some damn good coffee!

A quiet chuckle escaped his lips as he leaned back on his bed, head propped up by firm arms as he stared at the ceiling. Cracks and creases decorated the slightly stained wallpaper; reminding him creases that flowed across that white apron strapped across blondie's body. Over the numerous visits Jean had learned that blondie did in fact have a name – Armin. He was momentarily confused as he had anticipated a slightly more feminine name but hey – if Annie was anything to go by, then it didn't matter if people's names didn't match their appearance. But Armin...wow...she really was cute. Jean hadn't felt butterflies in his stomach since he was a little kid, and got his first kiss after falling over a soccer ball that he was supposedly meant to kick.

Lost in thought, the boy didn't notice his wandering hand edging down towards his pants, his sub-conscious desires making an escape. Such blue eyes. And blonde hair...how cliché. And that little shy smile she gave him when she handed over his drink. God, he could only imagine coming home after a long and tiring day at work to find his beautiful princess in nothing but an over-sized shirt of his, running into his arms with an embarrassed but adorable greeting of:

"Welcome home, my love~!"

A shiver ran down Jean's spine and he bucked his hips instinctively – relishing in the slight friction of his jeans. His breathing had got rough, a sure sign that he apparently still dealt with raging hormones. Glancing over at the clock, he groaned and rolled over – realising he had only ten minutes to leave and meet Marco. Why did he have to get a hard-on at the most inappropriate times?! Sighing loudly he removed his hands and sat up, scruffing up his hair in the process. Shitty boring days were the worst...but at least he'd get to see his soon-to-be-girlfriend. Eheh. Then he wouldn't need to give himself a hand.

* * *

"Really, Jean? Really? At this rate they're going to get you banned from this place." Marco whined softly, trying to persuade his best friend to stop staring wide-eyed at the counter with a predatory glint in those orbs. "Look, if you just go up to her and ask to hang out some time, then the whole thing will be fixed! And...I'll stop getting second-hand embarrassment-"

"Shh, shh." A hand fumbled over to cover the others lips as Jean refused to direct his gaze elsewhere than the blondie smiling sweetly at customer after customer. Marco just didn't understand! Jean sighed internally; wishing he could finally get the courage to just stand up, ask her out and then run home back to his dorm crying if she rejected him. Well...maybe not crying. Yeah. He was too cool to cry, pft who was he kidding?! He'd style it out – make himself look like a player and make her jealous on what she was missing out on. Yeah. Determined, he nodded his head to his own thoughts, only to make Marco cringe further, and continue begging the other to stop being such a "stalker."

Abruptly, the teen stood up, banging his chair against the wall with the force of his emotions. Now. Now was the right time. Strolling over as nonchalantly as he could, Jean sauntered over to the counter, leaning against it smoothly.

"Hey cutie."

Innocent eyes flickered up to meet Jean's, and he allowed a lazy grin to edge on the tips of his lips as he noticed the slight pink tinge show on her cheeks.

"H-Hey...tea again?"

"Sure." The taller of the two allowed his smile to turn soft, but with a tint of bedroom-eyes still sparkling away as the other began preparing his beverage. "So hey, I was thinking. Armin, right? Well since I visit here so often and you make one 'hella drink – would you like to hang out after your shift ends? I mean, no pressure, you just seem pretty chill and I think we'd get along." Heart in his mouth, Jean just smiled tightly – hoping that for the sake of his reputation he wouldn't get rejected.

After a long few moments of deliberation, the other nodded softly, hair bouncing slightly.

"Yeah...I finish at 5.30pm. Can you hold on or...?"

"I'll wait!" The boy was quick to reply, instantly beaming with the news. He was _definitely_ going to score with this one! Armin looked pleased as they exchanged money for the drink and soon enough, Jean was zooming back over to Marco – laughing loudly as he clapped the other on the back.

"I did it, man! I fuckin' did it! Woah, Jean Kirchstein is the freakin' B O M B!" Jean continued to congratulate himself loudly before taking a big gulp of his drink – only to then start yelling and flapping his hands by his extended tongue from the burning heat. A few customers in the shop gave disdainful looks towards the boys – in which Marco apologised quietly for their antics as Jean focused on saving his precious organ from any more damage.

* * *

Armin couldn't believe it; he had a date, kinda, thing... With Jean! He smiled to himself and as the last few customers left, he took off his apron and hung it up, quickly going into the back of the store and coming back out in an awful Christmas jumper that oddly worked on him. Armin smiled and Jean and sat down in the chair opposite.

"Tongue feeling better?" He laughed softly and bit his lip, watching Jeans face.

"Yeah...it's okay." Jean smiled bashfully, nervously rubbing the fact of his neck in slight embarrassment. "How's your...uh..." he trailed off, realising that Armin was indeed close to perfect.

"Yeah I'm fine" Armin grinned, showing rows of perfect white teeth, his tongue poked between an overbite a little and he tucked his hair behind his ear. Armin felt a little nervous in front of the handsome teenager and pulled his sleeves over his hands.

"So what-" He stumbled before realising Jean was about to say something and thus, held out a hand to let Jean speak.

"A-Ah! Yeah...um." Jean trailed off awkwardly, internally beating himself up for acting like such a loser. "What's your favourite colour?" He nodded to himself slightly: Yes, warm her up to you and then pop out the big question.

Armin laughed gently and smile "I like blue, pastels... They're nice and soft to look at" He smiled and Jean and bit his lip, "What's yours~?"

"Mm, midnight blue. I think it's because it reminds me of the night sky: and how despite everything that goes on in our lives - we're significant in comparison to the universe. The sky goes on and on but we're still just here, never getting any further than the average person but light years away that same colour could be providing the same feeling to someone else..." The boy blinked, the words flowing out of his mouth before he even realised it. "Ah, I mean! Orange. Because...it's bright...and cool...like myself." He grinned crookedly, cheeks burning softly at how he let himself get away with sounding deep and boring.

Armin ran a hand through his hair and smiled; his cheeks pink as he tucked his hair behind his ear again.

"You know Jean, you're not as boring as Eren makes you out to be~" Armin fiddled with his jumper sleeves; he was nervous and had butterflies and his leg was shaking under the table, a nervous impulse he'd had since he was a child. Was he being too forward? He'd seen Jean's face drop at the last sentence and he panicked a little.

"Eren...as in Eren fuckin' Jaeger?" Jean's voice rose a little, the anger not hard to notice. "You know that douchebag?" He growled slightly, learning back as he folded his arms moodily. "That guys always trying to get under my skin, giving me these looks like he knows I suck. It's not even me! It's the freakin' team! Y'know Armin, being goalie really sucks because I can never rely on my team to back me up, they always let the ball through and I'm stuck with Jaeger's smirk as he eyes up my goal posts like they're flimsy metal sticks!" His eyes widened slightly as the realisation hit him. "Wait...you're not...dating Jaeger...are you?"

Armin leant back a little in his chair as Jean got louder - he hated being shouted at and he winced a little as he got louder. He was almost pulling the sleeves apart by now and his leg was moving fast

"Jean...! I've been single since I started at Maria... No-one's ever even taken interest in me Jean. Eren's my best friend, I live with him oh and Mikasa." Armin smiled sweetly and fiddled with his nails - Jean still seemed angry and he was bracing himself for another shouting incident.

Huh...single? This precious angel was single?! Leaping forward, Jean pulled Armin's arms and held onto his hands tightly. "Hey, do you want to date me? I mean you barely know me. " He laughed slightly, "But you're really cute. And uh, the only reason I visit here is to see you because you make my day that little bit brighter." he smiled awkwardly.

"W-What?! Jean I never-" Armin cleared his throat, his cheeks red and the tips of his ears were burning. He took a deep breath and looked into Jeans eyes: "I never knew you were into guys..." A smile broke out on his face. "I've had a crush on you for ages I mean who wouldn't? You're Jean Kirchstein! But you like me? I would have never thought you were gay but wow...! I'd love to..." He blushed at his little speech and looked down, his hair falling in front of his face.

Jean's smiled faltered slightly as he processed those words. Gay. Male. Gay. Armin. Gay. MALE?! His face dropped immediately - the words catching in his throat slightly as he searched for the words to say.  
"I-I...you're...gay...you're not...a girl?" He gaped slightly, eyes widened that all this time he'd been fantasizing over a guy? What the fuck was this?!

Armin's eyes widened and he pulled his hands away. He tried to find his voice and when he finally spoke it cracked  
"Y-You thought I was a girl...?" His eyes brimmed with tears, his bottom lip wobbling. He was humiliated having poured his heart out to some asshole who thought he was a girl? He was just like everyone else! He knew he should have got his hair cut. He sniffed softly and a tear dripped down his cheek.

'No, No, No, do not cry in front of him Armin come on...'

Despite his brain telling him not to, more and more tears dripped down his cheeks, he couldn't stop them, his shoulders shook and small sobs left his mouth, his big eyes watery and tears caught on his lashes.

Shit. Jean Kirchstein you are so NOT the bomb right now! Jean panicked slightly at the sudden reaction of the boy, and he could feel the guilt begin to kick in. How had he not noticed it before? The slight defined jawline, the rough voice that hinged occasionally after a tiring day, the freakin' male name!  
"U-Uh, Armin, please. Don't cry. Uhm...it doesn't matter that you're male!" he chuckled uncomfortably, attempting to stop the depressing mood. "Like I said - I visited you because I thought we'd have stuff in common and look: we do! Our gender!" Seeing Armin begin to cry harder the other realised this wasn't going to work. "Look...Armin. Please. It doesn't matter that you're a boy, honestly! There's a first time for everything. C'mon bro, this can work out - we can still go on a date?"

"You're just saying that...! Y-You don't mean it...!" He hiccupped and hid his face in his sleeves as he made small whimpering noises and wiped his eyes "It's f-fine Jean, I understand... I mean you just want to be friends yeah? T-That'll be fine... It'll be fine..." Armin looked into Jeans eyes and smiled weakly: his eyes puffy and teary. His lip still wobbled and he knew he was bad at lying and he knew Jean was too smart to ignore it.

Jean bit his lip slightly as he watched devastation pull apart the person he began to fall for. And he didn't like it one bit. Without thinking, he leaned forward abruptly, clasping Armin's jaw as he kissed the other. Armin's lips were surprisingly...soft? He hummed quietly before pressing another chaste kiss against unresponsive lips before letting go, lifting his gaze to meet that of a shocked and nervous blonde.  
"What do I have to do to show you I'm being serious?"

Armin took a deep breath and blinked a couple of times, his tears stopping; he wiped his face quickly and swallowed.  
"Wh... Why did you do that...?" He licked his lips and his cheeks deepened in colour again. "Jean why...?" A small giggle passed his lips and he blushed deeper "Jean you took my first kiss...!" He grinned at Jean and covered his mouth as if protecting himself from another attack.

"Ayy shut it Blondie" Jean looked away bashfully, attempting to cover up the fact that his own cheeks were flushed. He glanced over however to see Armin giggling to himself and he couldn't help but smile at how adorable the other was. "So how about it? You interested? Or should I go mope back to my dorm now?" he smiled teasingly - instinctively reaching out to mess around with the blondes fingers.

Armin smiled and nodded, his hair bouncing with each nod and he squeezed Jeans fingers gently.

"I'd love to..." Armin bit his lip and put on his scarf "Jean, I need to lock up because I was meant to like, a half hour ago and I don't want to get in trouble again..." He pulled on a coat and gloves to stay warm. Grabbing the key from behind the counter he quickly ushered Jean out the shop and locked the door behind him.

Nodding, Jean allowed himself to be pushed out - before turning to the blonde. "I should probably head back myself anyway - Marco's probably telling everyone I died or something." He laughed softly. "So, can I have your cell number or something?"

Armin grinned and pulled his mobile out and unlocked the screen.

"Of course~" He read out his number to Jean and smiled at him sweetly "If you text me then I'll add you as a contact... Okay?" He pushed his hands back into his pockets and stood awkwardly in front of his very handsome, very new boyfriend. He didn't know if he should kiss him goodbye: the thought made him flush and he bit his lip, tucking his nose under his scarf.

"I uh... Guess this is goodbye till t-tomorrow?"

Jean rapidly took down the numbers before pocketing his cell. "Yeah, I'll be there for my tea or something." he stood there awkwardly, also unsure of what to do. What did girls- correction Jean: GUYS like? Hugs? Outstretching his arms he beckoned for Armin to come closer so they could hug. His solid arms wrapped around the delicate form of the other. "So yeah...goodnight, I'll text you when I get back to my dorm"

"Okay~! Night Jean..." Armin smiled and turned to walk to his apartment, he bit his lip and grinned, he was happy, he had a boyfriend! Finally! And nothing could stop him from smiling! He quickly crossed the campus and climbed the stairs, humming happily before pushing open his door "I'm back~"

Armin smiled happily to himself, his life had finally taken a turn and he liked it.

* * *

**Okay yo. Chapter 2 already hell ye**

**we had to write this chapter together and it took ages gah**

**ok so story is on a roll now and shits getting serious.**

**~REVIEW~ *Spanks***

**x LeatherandChocolate x x EarlGreyQueen x **


	3. Chapter 3

Shutting off the water, Jean sighed loudly – shaking water droplets from his hair. Marco's eyes flicked over, having heard the dramatic sigh from the other. Jean usually ranted through their showers after soccer training sessions; however the last few days the teenager had seemed rather pent up. Marco guessed it was something due to the "date" the other had got with the blonde server back in the coffee shop, but he wasn't one to jump to conclusions. Instead, the freckled boy grabbed a towel and followed suit as Jean began dressing.

"Oi, Marco. Let's order in pizza tonight or something, and invite the bros round. I need some entertainment and these sport essays are killin' me. I took this subject thinking it was all physically based, jeez. They never said I needed to use my brain." Jean huffed a little, running a hand through his hair as his t-shirt clung to his body, the other obviously not having dried himself off completely.

Prying his eyes off the other, Marco coughed quietly to himself before nodding.  
"Sure. I'll text the others now."

Grabbing their stuff, Jean sauntered off down the corridor, his mind full of annoying little blondes by the name of Armin. Ever since that night...Jean had been unable to stop himself thinking about what he'd gotten himself into. Armin, as a girl, would be totally explainable and logical to his friends. But Armin as a boy...he shuddered slightly, already imagining the taunts they'd make, the disappointment, the shock. Not that his friends weren't cool with homosexuals or anything – but Jean was what you'd call straightest of the straight. He was right in for the boobs – for the girls. See a hot girl, wolf whistle. See a hot girl, attempt to woe her. But now...he had a _boyfriend! _The word still seemed unfamiliar on his tongue; it'd contradict everything he'd been telling them for the past years. And that annoyed him. Eyebrows furrowed slightly, as reputation was everything. Armin was cute as a button, no denying that. But the fact he fell for Armin without even realising he was a guy...well Jean was in denial about that. The kid had been crying and blubbering everywhere and that totally guilt-tripped him, that apparently was solved through a kiss. Jean groaned inwardly. Why was he such an idiot?! The kiss had sealed the deal. If only he hadn't instinctively gone to comfort the other- he wouldn't be in this predicament!

But tonight would be a boy's night. Tonight would be where he forget all about his stupid, irrational decisions and would instead sit back, relax, drink and play videogames. Ahh. Exactly what he needed.

* * *

A soft rapping was heard against the door as Jean attempted to clear his room of all the junk cluttering up the place.

"C'mon in!" he yelled from underneath the bed – as he pathetically tried to hide all his rubbish. The door opened quietly and a low chuckle was heard at the appearance of Jean's butt wiggling to get himself back from underneath the furniture. Snapping up, the teen breathed heavily, as a lazy but dumb grin adorned his face.

"Hey Marco. When are the rest arriving?"

"Any moment now. Hey...you really should clean this place more...it sort of smells." The other frowned slightly as he made his way into the small room; opening a window in the process. Jean just hummed in response, leaning against the wall.

"But cleaning is boring. Can't be dealing with that man. Did you bring the pizza? I'm starving!"

Marco tutted softly as he took a seat on the edge of the boy's bed.  
"What do you take me for? Obviously I ordered pizza – your favourite as well. It should arrive just after Connie and Mike arrive. Reiner and Bert had to cancel – apparently they've already got plans with Annie and well you know...you don't want to upset Annie."

Jean shuddered involuntarily, already imagining all the sick and terrifying things Annie would and could do if you upset her. Leaning forward to set up the xBox with a Fifa game, Jean hummed softly as silence entered the room. But it wasn't one of those awkward silences. Marco had been his best friend since middle school; even going as far as planning their arrival at college together. Marco was the best friend he could ever have and it was surprising the freckled kid didn't give up with Jean after all his stupid.

Soon enough the door bashed open and Connie dived onto the bed; making the hinges squeak painfully under his sudden weight. Mike walked in much more calmly – moreover Connie's friend than Jean's. But hey, a bro was a bro no matter what. Like promised, the pizza arrived soon after and all the boys tucked in, greasy fingers constantly flickering from the doughy deliciousness and the game control. Jean was currently playing against Mike, eyebrows furrowed as he focused on the screen probably too intently. Pizza was half hanging out of his mouth as his players whizzed around the virtual field, attacking and defending to the maximum.

"Shit." He breathed out under his breath as Mike's striker zoomed forward, passing the ball from player to player effortlessly as Jean prepared his goalie to take the shot. The boot rose to kick the ball and Jean hunched over a little more as tension began to fill his body.

_**'SEID IHR DAS ESSEN NEIN WIR SIND DER JAGER'**_

Cursing loudly Jean jumped, allowing Mike the opportunity to shoot and score from Jean's defenceless goalie. Glaring at the celebrations on the screen, Jean quickly grabbed his cellphone, accepting the caller without checking the I.D.

"Yo Kirshstein here. This better be good I just lost the championship on Fifa!"

"Jean...it's me." The soft voice mumbled across the line. "Am I calling at a bad time? Aah...sorry."

Shit. Armin. Jean's eyes widened as he shoved his controller in Marco's hands, scooting backwards to rest against the wall. Confused sets of eyes followed him as he grinned awkwardly at them, signing for them to continue playing.

"Hey! Sorry I didn't mean that – I didn't check caller I.D. How are you doing? Sorry I haven't messaged you since uh, yesterday. I've been busy with training."

A light exhale of breath was heard – obviously the blonde being relieved that Jean wasn't actually mad at him. "I'm good thanks! I didn't have work together so I was just helping clean up with Mikasa. Mm...I just missed hearing your voice." Armin giggled quietly and Jean felt his heart palpitate as he fought a blush to adorn his cheeks. The bros were here man, he had to look macho!

"Aha..I uh.." he coughed loudly as he attempted to cover up the words. "I-missed-you-too." Armin smiled cutely in response to the words – butterflies covering his stomach at his boyfriend being shy but sexy at the same time.

Jean however, stared at the ceiling intently – having seen all the boys heads snap round to observe him after the not so subtle cough and words that only an idiot wouldn't have understood. He was not here to get judged, oh my God. A lewd smirk stretched across Connie's face as he leaned forward, getting too close for comfort as Jean's gazed was dragged back down worryingly at the boy in front of him. As the teen began to open his mouth Jean's eyes widened – having regretted the very moment of inviting this dude over.

"Oh Jeaaaan~! Is that your girlfriend on the phone?" Connie winked as he spoke intentionally loudly, hoping whoever was on the line heard him.

"Uh...do you have company right now?" Armin's quiet voice fluttered from the other end of the phone and Jean quickly began stammering a lie.

"N-No totally on my own!"

"Oi Jean, is she cute? Hey hey, girl!" Connie grabbed the phone shoving his face up close to the microphone. "Jean is a real hunk y'know have you seen his dick, I've heard stories that it's legendary- AHHH-" The boy yelled as he was pushed off the bed, phone re-claimed by the original owner.

"Shit Armin! Don't listen oh my God, I want to die – he's lying oh my God, okay yeah I have a few friends over that's it. Oh God please, I'm so so sorry."

Armin, however, blushed incredibly at the words of the other boy as he sunk under the water – his phone being on speaker. Hopefully Eren or Mikasa wasn't passing by the door at that moment. His ears burned softly as he cheeks continued to be tinged – it wasn't the time to be thinking about Jean's dingle-dongle right now!

"Armin, you still there? God, babe, I'm so sorry really. Wow, yeah Connie fuck off go play the game, Marco help me please like ah!" Jean began ranting at the others before locking himself in the bathroom – away from any more potential embarrassing scenarios.

"Jean? Are you alone now?"

"Sure am! God, so sorry my friends are idiot's man."

"I-It's okay..." Armin felt a shyness suddenly overcome him, like they were talking for the first time or something. "Maybe I should go now...I'm getting sort of sleepy and I'm still in the bath."

Jean choked slightly, "You're calling me from in the BATH?!" So his current boyfriend was literally right now soaking wet and naked, holy fuck nononono Jean junior please don't make an appearance.

"Yeah...aha." A gentle laugh was heard. "So yeah...goodnight Jean."

"Night! Wait – want to meet tomorrow for lunch or something? Or dinner. Are you even working? I don't know! Ah fuck God, sorry."

rmin made a soft noise "I'm working tomorrow and I can meet you after then...we could go for Chinese or something...?" He sat up a little, the water sloshing around him and sighed softly, a whine coming from the back of his throat, his eyes widened and he coughed, trying to cover up the noise that just left his lips.

Jean nodded slightly, staring at his own reflection in the bathroom. God, when did he let his hair get so scruffy?! He really needed to straighten up if he intended on having Armin still liking him. Thus, being absorbed with his own appearance he missed the timid noise from the other - which was probably good. Hard on's after bathroom breaks with the bros were awkward. "Yeah, sounds good. I'll pick you up after your shift again if that's cool?"

"Oh yeah of course~ 5:30 as usual~?" Armin sat up and pushed himself out the water, it sloshing around and echoing around the bathroom and stepped out "It can be my treat if you want?" He wrapped his towel around himself and cuddled into the warm fabric, humming softly at the comfort.

Jean, having heard the water this time felt his mouth go dry as he forced the words out. "Sounds great. I'll see you then. Goodnight!"

"G'night Jean, I'll see you tomorrow..." Hearing the phone go dead Armin put the phone down and wrapped the towel around him before opening the door, Eren literally falling into the room "Eren!"

"Armin! I'm telling Mikasa! Ew Jean Kirchstein of all people! Ew! EW!" Eren scrunched his face up and shook his head "Seriously! Anyone else but him!" The dark haired teen made a vomiting noise and pretended to throw up onto the blonde.

"Go away Eren...you're annoying me." Armin's eyebrow twitched a little and he pushed Eren back "I'm eighteen now Eren, I don't need you babying me." Armin tried to slip past and Eren caught his arm, glaring at the blonde with hard eyes.

"I don't like him Armin. He'll break your heart." Erens eyes narrowed.

"Get off me...you're hurting me." Armin pulled his arm away "Can't you just be happy I'm happy...?" He bit his lip and disappeared into his room, sitting down on the bed.

Armin sniffed and wiped his eyes, quickly texting Jean '**I need a Jean cuddle.**'

* * *

Stepping back into the room, Jean casually slided back down to the ground where his friends were playing. Marco glanced up briefly, nodding softly.  
"You okay?" Jean just smiled back.

"It's all cool. Thanks." Starting to relax the teen lay back, watching the others play on the screen before his phone lit up once again. This time with a text message. Gee, he sure was popular today. Eyebrows furrowed as he read the message. Armin? They only stopped speaking like, 10 minutes ago. Quickly texting back he sighed softly. '**Yo what's up? Wanna come over? I can kick these dudes out, they're being dicks anyway. Otherwise virtual comfort- sorry I suck. -Jean x**'

'**Would I be a bother if I came round? I don't know if I can cope with Eren any more x'** Armin sighed softly and sent the message, pulling on some sweat pants and a loose t-shirt saying 'Team Kyojin' with the mascot, a weird guy with no skin on that they called 'Titan', printed on it. He rubbed his eyes and sat back down on his bed, feeling down and hurt not only mentally but physically too.

'**You better get your ass over here now. Block B, dorm 205. -Jean x**' Glancing up, Jean not so carefully kicked Connie in the back.  
"Yo guys, leave. I'm done and it's boring." Connie complained before being hauled up by Mike, who thanked the teen for the pizza and company before leaving. Marco however just stood there, stretching as his back clicked.

"You sure you're okay Jean? You're acting...different. But ah well, see you around. Thanks for the pizza and game. It was fun." The freckled boy smiled sweetly, eyes creasing up at the corners before leaving.

* * *

**'If I slip out my window and die this is your fault okay x' **Armin quickly sent the message before pulling on a hoodie and some shoes, opening his window slowly as he started climbing out; jumping neatly onto the roof and hopping down - smoothly catching the jump and as he started off towards the Dorm. Shivering slightly he zipped his hoodie up and pulling the hood up to try and stay warm - wishing he had a scarf and a coat as well to layer it up like usual. Except this time he was feeling guilty for sneaking out without telling anyone.

Jean just glanced around his room, groaning at the mess. Maybe he really should clean up more. Shoving the pizza box in the bin he quickly brushed his teeth for minty breath, brushing down his ugly slacks and band tee. Who needed to look fashionable late at night, ugh?

Soon Armin was at Jean's dormitory block and he climbed the stairs, knocking on the door shyly  
"Jean...?" He stood in the doorway feeling small and nervous. It was late and what if Jean was naked or something? Ohh God no, that'd be so horribly embarrassing... Armin shook his head and his cheeks flushed a dark pink colour with the thoughts that just passed his mind.

Hearing the soft rap of knuckles against the wood, Jean launched forwards for the handle, before quickly smoothing down his hair. Opening it as subtly as he could, he smiled down at the other.  
"Evening. It's a mess but c'mon in anyway." Extending the door he allowed the petite blonde to enter his not so humble abode, with posters peeling off the walls & washing shoved up in corners as rubbish scattered the sides. The only thing that was DECENT in the whole place was the bathroom - in which Jean took great pride in. He didn't want that looking gross man.

Armin made a soft noise of thanks and spoke gently.  
"I'm really sorry for coming over so late Jean... I-It's just Erens being such an ass and I hate him at the minute and he still treats me like I'm ten and... A-And..." Armin fiddled with his zips "He's just treating me so mean and he w-was yelling and grabbing me and he g-got so angry..." Tears rolled down his cheeks and he hid his face, sitting down on Jeans bed and pulling his knees up. "I just fucking hate it." Armin never swore and only ever did when he was upset or angry, and right now he was both.

Jean's eyes widened as he heard the tone of the others voice - as well the sudden taboo words. Hopping up onto his bed, Jean pressed a hand softly on the other's shoulder. "Hey hey hey, what's stupid Jaegar doing this time?" Slipping closer, his arm intertwined around the others shoulder, pulling the blonde against his chest.

"He was listening to our conversation through the door which annoyed me anyway, and then he was telling me what to do like I should break up with you, you're going to hurt me and stuff like that and he grabbed my arm really tight and was right up in my face... He tried to tell me what to do and I stood up to him and apparently he didn't like that..." Armin leant into Jean and wrapped his arms around the broader teen, cuddling up to him "I don't know why he's being such a butt."

"Fuckin' Hell, there's always a stick jammed up that Jaegar's ass." Jean growled angrily, not liking the way the douchebag was treating his boyfriend at all. "Where did he grab you?"

Armin giggled light heartedly at what Jean said "He's so moody..." He unzipped his hoodie and slid down the side "On my arm..." He frowned at the finger shaped bruises on his skinny arm "I bruise easily Jean... It's n-nothing I swear..." Armin was chewing his lip nervously not liking the expression on Jeans handsome face.

Jean's eyes narrowed murderously as he looked down at the finger shaped marks decorating his blondes pale flesh. Growling softly he raised the boys arm to his lips - brushing his lips against the injured skin. Eyes flicked up to meet those of Armin's as he breathed out softly. "Sorry I wasn't there to stop him."

"It doesn't matter Jean... Mikasa always makes him suffer..." Armin smiled weakly and held his breath, Jeans eyes still connected to his wide blue ones, he bit his lip and bent his head to press his lips gently to Jeans his cheeks pinking with the contact and he closed his eyes.

Humming softly, Jean leaned forward instinctively to get a hold on Armin's jaw, tilting his chin slightly to get a better angle as he re-connected their lips. His own eyelids fluttered shut as he gently let go of Armin's arm, instead placing his hand on the waist of the other as he placed butterfly kisses against the others lips.

The blonde slid his arms around Jean's neck and pressed into his boyfriend, his back curling a little as a small hand ran through Jean's rough undercut. Armin shuddered at the feel of it against his fingers; he made a soft noise and cupped the back of Jean's neck, pulling him a little closer.

Jeans breathing began to get heavier as he pulled the other closer, totally absorbed. The blonde was light as a feather and his petite body easily reminded him of a woman which made the whole experience easier. Biting on the pouting lip presented forward, Jean's eyes re-opened as he gazed at the other - unsure of how far they were meant to be taking this.

Armin made a small soft noise, a shiver running down his spine with the feel of Jean's teeth, everything was getting very hot very quickly to Armin. His cheeks reddened and he moaned a little into the kiss. He could feel Jean's hands burning through the thin t-shirt and he pressed into the hand, wanting more touches, it was all so good.

Jean's own cheeks flushed slightly at the wanton moan that escaped from the blonde's throat- his own neediness beginning to show. Jean's fingers began to play with the tips of the boy's shirt, the hot skin enticing him. Moving his mouth he latched onto the blonde's throat, sucking on the pulsing vein gently.

Armin breathed heavily and covered his mouth, small whines slipping between his fingers "J-Jean..." He gripped onto the boys shoulder and tilted his head for Jean to have more room; he bit his lip and hid his blushing face in Jeans hair, breathing hotly into his ear.

Jean felt all the pants in his ear which travelled quickly southwards towards his groin. Groaning softly he rolled his hips forward as he clutched the blondes hips, biting into the flesh.  
"F-fuck man..."

Armin bit down on his lip and moved his hips wantonly against Jeans, his cheeks were red with embarrassment, he'd never done anything like this before unless it was to himself but with someone else, especially Jean, it was a hundred times better.

"Nnn... Ah... J-Jean... Mnn..." His voice was low and husky unlike he had ever heard it before and he moaned, gripping onto his boyfriend tightly, his nails digging into his back.

Fuelled by adrenaline and passion, Jean continued to explore the others body, attacking any skin that he could get his hands on. Soon enough they reached the waistline of the blonde once again and without permission, he palmed the bulge that was obviously protruding out.

Suddenly alert, Armin pulled back and grabbed the intruding wrist, squeezing a little "J-Jean... Stop p-please... I don't think I'm ready f-for that yet..." He licked his licked his lips nervously and looked at Jean; he spoke softly "I'm really sorry..." Armin's eyes were wide and looked a little scared but glazed with lust "I'm just n-nervous and... Yeah... Uh..."

Jean's eyes flicked up in annoyance - seeing as the other had instigated the mood in the first place. Plus, the dude was fuckin' horny how cruel did Armin have to be to deny his erection? Sighing softly he learned back, allowing his hands to drop from the blonde's body. "Fine, fine. Let's stop before I regret saying that."

Armin chewed his lip nervously and climbed off of Jean's lap "I'm sorry Jean..." He rubbed the back of his neck and looked at Jean like a puppy that had been kicked, "I'm really annoying right..?" A forced laugh left his lips and he hugged his knees to his chest, resting his chin on his knees and looked at the TV, watching the paused game screen.

Glancing over, he felt his heart twinge a little at the expression the blonde wore. It wasn't his fault that he'd never experienced something like this. And really Jean, were you going to take him on a night where he'd been obviously upset? No, you were better than that. You'd take him on a night where you'd make an effort & not let it be a quick fuck. Leaning over, Jean pulled the other down onto his bed, instead winding is arm around the boys waist as he covered their faces with the duvet.  
"You have work in the morning remember. You better start resting." Pressing a light kiss to the blonde forehead, Jean instead snuggled down.

Armin cuddled in close and smiled up at Jean from their little cocoon of warmth and nuzzled his chin with his nose "I'm sorry Jean... But thank you for tonight..." A smile placed on his lips and he pressed soft kisses all over the light brunettes jaw and finally snuggled down again, wrapping an arm around the light brunette. A smile tugged the tips of the Jean's lips as he scruffled blonde locks playfully. "Go to sleep kiddo."

* * *

**Oh wow okay chapter 3 is up my friends**

**Leatherandchocolate and I have been really stressed this week ew but thank the lord school is almost over**

**so yes enjoy the nerds and review uvu **

**x Leatherandchocolate x x Earlgreyqueen x**


	4. Chapter 4

Strands of sunlight crept into the dark room, the beams gently illuminating those in the depths of sleep. Jean was lying on his back, his breathing heavy but soothing. His chest rose and then deflated as he breathed evenly, in the utmost state of relaxation. His eyebrows were soft and his face innocent as any worry lines decreased in his unconscious state. The blankets ruffled softly and the figure of a much smaller male slipped out, moving around the room fluidly and noiselessly as he gathered things up. The sunlight merged in with the blonde hair, giving the boy a soft aura and the vision of a naive individual. With a few more glances around the room, the figure then made its way over to the door – retreating to whatever lay beyond the dormitory.

* * *

Rolling over, the light brunette instinctively slipped an arm over to what he expected to be a warm body. Instead, his hand came into contact with the cold and empty sheets, which automatically made his eyes flick open. Indeed, the spot was empty. Pressing his hand more firmly against the whiteness, he sighed softly, realising they were not remotely warm in the least. Implying that Armin had sneaked out sometime, presumably in the early morning. Armin. His eyes widened as he remembered last night's activities and how close he had been to stripping the kid and giving him a night he'd never forget.

"Fuck." Hitting himself in the head, Jean sighed even louder and closed his eyes. He got far too carried away, even for his standards. And Armin had got up and left, like he was an easy lay, except, they didn't even do the deed. Sitting up, the teen checked his cell-phone. No new messages. Whatever. Growling softly, he forced himself up, peeling off the well fitting t-shirt and flinging it somewhere in the mess of his room. Running a hand through his hair he glanced back at his own reflection, face sweaty and need of a desperate clean. And his bedroom smelt like freakin' old pizza. It was disgusting. Grabbing a towel he opened up the bathroom door and switched on the hot water, waiting for the wet room to heat up before he made his way under the spray. Deeming it had been a suitable enough time, he hung the towel up on the side, removed his boxers and stepped under the waterfall of hot liquid, relishing in the way it slid down his body. A hand sneaked its way down his chest until it firmly cupped his dick, the hot water and strong grip making him shudder slightly. How long had it been since he'd last done this? As his hand pumped faster, the soft coil of arousal built up in his stomach, his breathing heavy as he leant against the wall – engulfed in the sensation. Growling lightly, he fought back a moan as he bucked his hips in pace with the pumps, imagining the delicate blonde beneath him with lithe fingertips stroking his aching cock.

"Nnn...Armin..." the blonde's name escaped Jean's lips before he had a moment to regret it, his cheeks flushing slightly at the crude thoughts of the younger boy. Covering his mouth with his other hand, he bit his lip harshly to stop from calling out – seeing as the walls separating each dorm to another were extremely thin. Thumbing the slit of his dick, he shuddered once and for all, his cum quickly running down the drain in a mad escape. The pelterring of the water was overwhelming and Jean slid down the wall, catching his breath as he stared down at his now dirtied hand. Fuck. What was Armin making him feeling? Resting his forehead on his knees, he shut his eyes. He was really falling for that stupid blonde.

* * *

Armin took a deep breath, opening his front door and wincing slightly as it creaked loudly. Stepping in, he grimaced at the sharp squealing of the wooden floor panels – a sure giveaway that someone had just entered the apartment. The soft padding of feet was heard, and the blonde froze before the lights were switched on, momentarily blinding the blonde, leaving his large puppy blue orbs blinking in an attempt to stop squinting.

"Armin?" A strong voice rung out from along the corridor, and the blonde felt himself inwardly groan at the owner of the voice. Swallowing slightly, he shifted uncomfortably and looked up to see his suspicions confirmed.

"Yeah...?" To be honest he didn't even know why he was sounding so sorry; he was eighteen for goodness sake! And in a typical Jean Kirstein way, his boyfriend right now would tell him to buck up and yell at Eren, but the blonde felt his heart hammer nervously instead.

"Why were you out all night?! No wait. I know what you were doing! You were with Horse Face...weren't you?" Eren stomped down the stairs, the footsteps echoing as his rhetorical question bumped off the blonde. Eren knew. He didn't even need confirmation. The other's eyes were burning with anger, his fists clenching as he attempted to control any overflowing feelings of hatred towards Jean.

"Eren shut up, you'll wake Mikasa...!" Armin's voice was soft and quiet, becoming automatically timid at the sudden hatred his best friend was displaying. Biting his lip Armin stepped back away from Eren, now worried for his own safety. Though with the brunette's voice being so loud – it wouldn't be long before Mikasa woke up and sorted them both out.

"So, did you fuck...? What did Kirchstein do!?" Eren growled angrily, oddly, just as protective as Jean had been last night – though definitely showing it in a different way.

"We didn't do anything! H-He had friends over there so I went over too..." The blonde flicked his gaze away shiftily, though it wasn't a lie! He was only bending the truth...slightly.

"You have hickeys all over your neck! You're a liar." Eren's voice cut the atmosphere sharply, his voice now normal – disappointment written over his face.

Armin swallowed nervously and slapped a hand over his neck, trying to cover the love bites left by his horny boyfriend last night and he blushed deeper. Opening his mouth, he began to stutter an excuse before getting interrupted-

"Boys." Another voice came from upstairs and they both looked up, seeing Mikasa hanging over the edge, her hair up and wearing an old checked shirt. "What are you doing? It's like six a-fucking-m." All at once both the boys erupted in excuses not wanting to piss of the already grouchy Mikasa.

"Well Armin snuck out to go see a guy and stayed there all night!"

"Eren came down the stairs and yelled at me! Mikasa tell him I'm an adult now!"

Mikasa came stomping down the creaky old wooden staircase and pushed Eren out the way, the other colliding unhappily with the wall as he grumbled under his breath, eyes following the actions of the two.

"Armin, sweetie, if you wanna go out with a guy and stay there, you go for it, you don't have to sneak out okay?" A soft smile blossomed for a minute before she turned on Eren. "And you. You leave Armin alone, I don't care if he's going out with fucking Hitler. As long as he is happy and uses protection why should it matter to you? He's eighteen now, you cannot control and protect him forever." And with what needed to be said, said, she disappeared back upstairs again and with a slam of a door was out of sight.

"You're a little shit Armin." Eren stormed upstairs as if he were five and just got told off by his mother for being naughty and Armin giggled. Mikasa was a total Jean when she was angry and he followed Eren upstairs, not even caring that Eren was still pissy.

Pulling off the ugly, nylon work apron, Armin opened up his locker at work, pulling on his favourite duffel coat and scarf – both presents from Eren and Mikasa last year. He smiled fondly at the memory, nuzzling down into the familiar material. Making his way to the front of the cafe, the small blonde said goodbye to his colleagues which responded quickly – waving him away happily and thanking him for the work achieved that day. Leaving his workplace, the blonde was surprised to see Jean sitting on the curb of the street, hands shoved into his pockets as he fought the cold. Armin made a mental note to buy Jean a warm, knitted jumper as soon as possible.

"Jean!" The blonde spoke out, a grin adorning his face as the other turned around, noticing Armin – his cheeks flushing a little as a gorgeous smile broke out on the elders face. Armin couldn't help but let the silly grin travel to his own face as he hugged his boyfriend tightly, leaning up to press a soft kiss against the elders cheek. Jean just stuttered a reply, hand having gone up to press against the place Armin's lips had touched. "Let's go get Chinese! I'm starving!" Giggling slightly, the blonde intertwined their fingers, mood improving drastically at the appearance of the light brunette. Jean just squeezed Armin's hand softly, following his boyfriend to the said restaurant, their breath rising and disappearing into the cold evening air.

* * *

Opening the door, Jean ushered the other boy in, stamping his feet as he attempted to warm up from the cold air. Being lead to a table, the two boys sat down, the scent of spices and noodles filling the air. Grabbing the menu, Jean leaned forward to share it with the other eyes scanning over the food.

Shuffling his chair closer Armin read the menu, deciding what to get without sounding like a fatty to his boyfriend. Biting his lip he saw all his favourite dishes and wished he could get them. He sighed and decided to wing it; he was paying so he was going to have what he wanted!

Jean meanwhile, just glanced across the menu; the words not making any sense to him seeing as he generally only ate American food of hamburgers, fries and pizza. It was the total student life. Having decided on a few courses, he decided to just choose at random and hope for the best. As the waiter came over, he ordered and waited for their food to arrive.

Meanwhile, Eren was watching from the corner of the restaurant, his eyes narrowing as he observed his best friend and forever enemy, Jean fuckin' Kirstein. What did Armin see in him anyway? His laugh was derpy and his face was too long to be natural and that hair?! He shivered slightly, eyebrows furrowing at the two toned locks. Noticing Armin turn around, he quickly pulled the menu too his face, eyes peeking out from over the top to keep a protective view on the blonde. It wasn't like he was being a stalker...he was protecting what was his! Armin was basically like a brother, or more like sister, seeing as the blonde acted like a girl half the time. And like Hell was he going to let some random guy whisk away his naive friend, with just a charming smile. It made him feel sick.

As Armin's eyes travelled across the room to take in the familiar room, his face fell momentarily at the recognisable dark, messy brunette hair and thick eyebrows poking out from over the top of a menu in the corner. Eren. Sighing softly, he forced his gaze away and instead focused on Jean, refusing to let his stupid best friend ruin his date night with his boyfriend.

"How was practice today? Your team any better?" The blonde attempted to make small talk to distract his mind from going over to tell Eren a piece of his mind – and how his behaviour was being unacceptable.

"Ugh, I don't even know man. I swear we just goof around half the time." Jean responded with an annoyed tone, a hand running through his hair he exhaled deeply. Leaning back into the chair more comfortably he flicked his gaze upwards, to meet those of blue. "When did you leave this morning? I didn't hear you."

Armin gulped loudly, quickly breaking their intense gaze, instead focusing on the table guiltily – as if he were in trouble.  
"I left at around half five, the coffee shop opens early so I usually work early... I got in trouble with Eren," His voice rose a little at the name. "But Mikasa stood up for me, so it was okay... I'm sorry I didn't leave a note or anything..." Armin quickly pressed his lips to Jean's cheek quickly and smiled apologetically.

The light brunette's eyes widened at the sudden affection, his cheeks flushing as he coughed slightly, trying to style out his embarrassment.

"It's okay...yeah." Looking down at the blonde, his eyes fixated to the soft, pouty lips of the other. "God I want to kiss you so bad right now." Flicking his eyes up he smiled softly at the blonde before reaching out to intertwine their fingers - the food soon arriving.

Eren however, was still in the state of shock from Armin's actions, his eyes wide as his jaw dropped open in disbelief. So they really WERE together!

Armin giggled at his boyfriend trying to be cool and squeezed his fingers lightly. He could see out the corner of his eyes the menu shaking at being crumpled between the slender fingers of Eren, and he snorted quietly, snapping the chopsticks smoothly, to start eating. Jean though seemed to be struggling with the wooden instruments.

"Here, let me teach you." The blonde took Jean's hand and made sure they were positioned right and smiled. "Try now, it should work."

The elder boy's eyebrows furrowed as he picked up the noodle, raising it slowly to his opening mouth before swearing as it fell. Trying again, the boy huffed a little, already feeling like a complete loser in this restaurant of experienced people.  
"Do they not provide a fucking fork? How do you do this? It's not fair! "

"Look like this..." Armin helped him again and started giggling whenever it dropped; watching the boy get more and more annoyed. "Wait here..." Standing up, the blonde walked past Eren's table, catching his eyes and scowling, muttering a light threat of death that obviously wasn't to be taken seriously.. Armin calmed himself once he reached the restaurant counter and asked politely for a fork, getting one for Jean. Handing it to his boyfriend, he smiled soflty. "There... Feel better?"

Jean looked down at the instrument placed in his hand, a smile forming at the tips of his lips. "Thanks!" as he began eating he hummed loudly in acknowledgement of how good it tasted. "So, what's new?" He looked up, grains of rice decorating around his mouth as he ate greedily.

Armin raised an eyebrow at how loud Jean was being and sipped his drink. "Nothing new that I know of." He ate a mouthful and smiled at his boyfriend "I think life's pretty much the same for me, nothing new and fancy and nothing interesting really..."

"Hm." Jean nodded slightly, continuing to shovel food in his mouth, surprised by how delicious it all was. Perhaps he'd have to widen his variety in food. Awkwardness took over the table as they both thought of what to say.

Armin ate quietly, sipping his drink now and again, throat feeling dry as nervousness took over him, as well as being a little awkward. Occasionally his eyes flicked up to see Eren grinning at their table and the awkwardness between the two.

Jean however, remained oblivious of the presence of his enemy and instead placed his chopsticks down, now finished. Glancing around, he moved back slightly.  
"I'm going to...the bathroom." Standing up, he made a beeline to the room, mentally beating himself up for being such a loser.

Armin sighed and rubbed his face in exasperation, wishing that Jean would be more interested in bit his lip and looked at Eren and shrugged, his best friend grinning back, the blonde scowling in return and rubbing his temples.

Jean strolled over to the sink, splashing some water on his face as he allowed the droplets to run down his neck. He was acting like a dweeb, and he needed to snap out of it. Obviously Armin wasn't having a good time. Maybe it was because of what they did...last night? Maybe Jean had gone to far and now Armin felt uncomfortable with him? He exhaled, thoroughly confused. Leaving the bathroom, he made his way back to the table, rubbing the back of his undercut nervously.  
"Yo, wanna get out of here?"

Armin nodded and stood up "I'll just go pay..." He took Jean's hand and pulled him with himself, paying to the handsome Asian that stood behind the counter. Feeling exceptionally generous he told them to keep the change and led Jean out; Eren glaring at the couple with pure anger in his eyes.

Jean's eyes flicked over momentarily, brief recognisement travelling across his face as he glanced over the figure of Eren. As he got dragged out the door, he faced Armin, a little confused.  
"Was that Jaegar?"

Sighing, Armin nodded.  
"Yeah... I guess he came to spy on us or something..." Armin squeezed his boyfriend's hand. "Please don't let it ruin our date...please Jean..." Begging, blue eyes looked up at his handsome boyfriend and he pouted childishly – a trick he had learned a long time ago to get his way.

The light brunette's face hardened and he felt his eyes narrow in the direction of the doorway, temptation to go back in and grab Jaegar overwhelming. Letting out an exaggerated sigh he forced his head away, instead tightening the grip on Armin's hand.  
"Sorry. I just- I hate him. Let's go."

Armin felt guilty for Eren being there, like it had been his fault his best friend had become a stalker. Linking his fingers with Jean's he rubbed his thumb across the back of the others hand, finding it calming just to feel his skin as he leant against Jean a little.  
"Where are we going?"

"I don't know, anyway. It was awkward in there." The older boy looked down at the other, before glancing up at the night sky. "Wanna go to the park?"

He nodded and followed Jean quietly, just enjoying the touch of his skin and watching the soft puffs of air rise into the sky and disappear. Biting his lip he looked up at Jean, looking a little worried at Jean looking bored, maybe Eren was right, Jean wasn't interested at all...

Jean just led them to the neighbouring park, a place he'd spent many times with Marco. Taking the other to the swings, he sat down; separating their hands as he roughly took hold of the metal chains, moving them softly.  
"So..."

"What...?" Armin looked across at Jean and swung himself gently, the chains creaking. He sighed, looking up at the light polluted night sky, it being hard to see any stars, biting his lip he looked back down at his feet and sighed.

"Come here." Jean nodded his chin sharply, spreading his legs slightly so Armin could sit on his lap, legs either side of his hips. Bringing his arms round the slender waist, he pulled the blonde closer to him. "So..." he breathed out again, a small smirk in place."Chinese was good."

Armin bit his lip and smiled, his cheeks flushing a little and nodded  
"I'm glad you enjoyed it... I think I like treating you if this is the outcome." He laughed softly and watched Jean fondly, his heart fluttering at how attractive the other could look – especially in this low light.

Jean just grinned lazily, head falling into the crook of the blonde's neck, his breathing warm and soft against the delicate skin. The coldness around them numbed lips as Jean gently brushed them against Armin's neck, holding the other delicately.

The blonde shuddered at the touch of his lips pressed against his neck, it sending goose bumps across his skin and a shiver down his spine. Leaning a little more into Jean he burrowed his nose into the others hair and breathed shakily.

Licking gently at the skin in front of him, dark brown eyes flicked up to meet Armin's eyes. Tilting his chin, Jean leaned up to connect their mouths, their breath hot as they instantly connected.

Armin closed his eyes, kissing Jean back and sliding his hands up his boyfriends toned chest to wrap around the back of his neck and pull him closer with pure passion. He loved this, the contact, the spark, the... love..? His cheeks heated at the thought and he made a soft noise.

Jean heard the timid noise, and he hummed softly, rubbing the small of the others back. As he moved away, he caught his breath, voice slightly hoarse.  
"God, we're in public." He laughed loudly before hugging the other tight. "Fuck you're good."

Laughing softly Armin covered his mouth, his cheeks a pretty pink colour.  
"Am I...? I've never kissed anyone before... P-Properly... Apart from you of course...Oh God I'm rambling... S-Sorry..." Armin giggled and hid his face behind his hair.

Jean left out another laugh, hiding his grin in Armin's blonde hair.  
"Stop being so fuckin' cute." He nuzzled the other gently before noticing the time. "It's getting sort of late..."

Armin climbed off Jean's lap and stood in front of him, looking worried, especially after the whole ordeal of last night.  
"What time is it...? Oh God Eren'll be mad..." He chewed his lip and his leg jiggled nervously.

"It's coming up to eight...do you need to leave?" Jean bit his own lip slightly, annoyed at how easily controlled Armin was by Eren. "I'll walk you back."

"That'd be nice... You could come in if you want, Mikasa won't mind." Armin smiled and took Jean's hand again, linking their fingers together and smiling up at the other, his eyes hopeful.

"Awesome." Jean smiled back, allowing himself to be led to the small apartment Armin shared with Eren and Mikasa, knowing it was a big step to already be introduced to his boyfriends friends. Especially as none of the light brunette's friends even knew he was romantically attracted to another guy.

* * *

Armin opened the front door, leading Jean up the stairs, shouting to Mikasaand hearing a grouchy reply. Looking back at Jean he smiled, opening the living room door to see Mikasa curled up in a night shirt watching TV, his eyes transfixed to the game show, with an almost bored expression on her face.

"Mikasa I have Jean round..." Armin spoke quietly, nervous as to how she would take it.

"Oh! Mystery boyfriend...!" Mikasa grinned as she saw Armin blush, her eyes flicking up to take in the appearance of Jean. "I won't tell Eren don't worry..."

"Thanks Mikasa..." Armin sighed; relieved, showing Jean through the flat a small tour in order before finally coming to his bedroom door. "I'm sorry it's messy..." Armin opened the door to a perfectly tidy room apart from a few open books on the floor.

Jean felt his heart skip a beat as he cast his eyes down upon Mikasa, her long black hair almost enchanting. He licked his lips nervously, as he stuttered to say a greeting back, before being whisked upstairs by Armin who obviously didn't want the conversation to prolong in case of any more embarrassment. The blonde really was easy to blush, eheh. Feeling a sense of nosiness overcome him, Jean poked his head around the door, entering to let out a small whistle. "Dude your place is the bomb." Sitting down on the bed, he smiled when it felt firm, but bouncy enough to not be uncomfortable. Eyes scanned across the shelves full of text books, clothes neatly put away in baskets.

Armin at this point was sat on the floor putting bookmarks in his books so he knew where to revise before putting them back onto the desk neatly,  
"I'm really sorry it was so messy... I've been revising late during the night..." He smiled up at Jean and stood up, taking off his coat and scarf, hanging them up. "Do you want a drink or something...?"

"Dude, you saw my place! That's totally worse." Jean grinned before leaning back, star fishing out on the bed as he stared at the ceiling that was decorated with glow in the dark stars. "Sure."

Armin laughed at Jean splayed out on his bed and smiled  
"I guess so." Leaving the room he headed towards the kitchen just as Mikasa poked her head through.

"Armin... Armin!" Her voice was a hushed whisper.

Armin jumped from the sudden appearance of Mikasa and turned around, seeing her holding out a box of condoms - his cheeks heating straight away.

"Be safe okay?"

"S-Sure...!" He grabbed them quickly, shoving them in his back pocket as he grabbed some glasses of coke, power walking back to his room – cheeks red insure disbelief.

Jean just sat up when he heard the door open, instinctively smiling at the blonde. Reaching out, he took the drink, taking a large swig as he wrapped an arm around Armin's waist. Nuzzling into the blonde's stomach, he looked up softly.  
"Is Eren coming back?"

The other just shrugged and sat down, the box crunching in his back pocket and poking into his butt cheek uncomfortably  
"He might be... Let's hope not..." He laughed and leant back against Jean, sipping his own glass before placing it on the bed side cabinet.

Jean followed suit before dragging Armin down on top of him, so the blonde lay securely on his chest. Running a hand through the blonde locks he hummed softly.  
"When did you realise you were...gay?"

"When I was about fifteen probably... I had my first crush on Eren and I just realised... I'd never liked a girl I'd only ever liked boys so it kinda dawned on me, I kept quiet and to myself in-case anyone found out but I'm not bothered anymore..." Armin sighed and relaxed into Jean a little, enjoying his body heat.

The other just nodded slightly in acknowledgement. Despite him having never liked Jaegar, for the sake of their relationship he guessed that he'd have to learn to live with the other being around.

Armin smiled at Jean and cuddled up close, his head resting on Jeans chest, he could feel the other boy breathing below him and the small twitches of his hands on his waist, each thing about Jean made his heart flutter and he hid his face, feeling like a twelve year old school girl.

* * *

**Ahoy~ Sorry Chapter 4 is up late /sigh**

**But here it is~ Hopefully me and m'lovely Jean will get round to some smut soon bcuz smut warms the soul.**

**We hope you enjoy this chapter and lets say we get 5 reviews for the next Chapter~ **

**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far as well3**

**x EarlGreyQueen x x Leather-And-Chocolate x**


	5. Chapter 5

Fear: an unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger, pain or harm. Fear can be rational or irrational. Or both. Fear is something that can be controlled or do the controlling. Fear can creep into your mind, the tendrils grasping at thoughts here and there, curling its wisps into the soundest places of your imagination. And once it's in there it breeds. It multiplies. It wraps you around its little finger, your body following every lead unwillingly.

Darkness. It was getting hard to breathe. Shallow breaths left small lungs as hands helplessly pounded at the walls that were inching closer. The darkness was invading. Cries tore through the silence, the air beginning to thicken as fear infiltrated the child, adrenaline running through the small body. Breathe. One two three. Breathe. The walls were crushing; the cries of help bouncing off the interior, as he was ignored. Tears ran down delicate cheeks as the boy curled in on himself, arms protecting his head as whispers escaped quivering lips – the walls churning in a beautifully cruel manner.

Breathe. One two three. Breathe.

* * *

Eyes snapped open as Jean's body bolted upright, his breathing erratic as he clasped his hair tightly within his fingertips, eyes widened in fear. He hadn't dreamt of that in years. A small yelp was heard as Armin toppled off the side of the bed, the projection of his boyfriend's body leaving him unbalanced and woken abruptly. The light brunette's eyes attempted to focus on the duvet in front of him as his chest heaved unhealthily – throat dry as he gasped for air. Ripping the blanket off his legs he rushed over to the window, ripping the glass pane open as he forced his head out, inhaling deeply. Shutting his eyes he allowed the breeze to gently caress his face. Breathe. One two three. Breathe. You will be fuckin' fine Kirstein. It was nothing but a bad dream. Just breathe.

Armin's messy hair popped out from the other side of the bed, confusion covering his sleepy face as he glanced over at his boyfriend. Jean appeared to be quite out of it, having suddenly woke the blonde up through a yell – practically throwing the other off his body.

"Um...Jean?" Armin's voice was quite, timid in how to approach his boyfriend. He'd never seen the other in this state before – thus making him quite unpredictable. Standing up, he brushed his clothes down, frowning when he felt the cardboard box poking into his backside – having forgotten about Mikasa's protection. Seeing this as the perfect opportunity of distraction, he ripped the box out of his jeans, slamming them not so subtly into his bedside table.

Yet Jean did not seem to notice, instead sighing quietly, heart beat calming down. Exhaling, dark eyes re-opened, reality softly dawning upon him as he looked down at the quiet street, the soft hum of city life travelling down the roads. Running a hand through messed up hair, the boy inwardly groaned, forcing himself back inside the other's bedroom. Eyes flicked over to where Armin stood, a faux smile shakily appearing on a nervous stricken face.

"Yo." His voice trembled slightly and he quickly looked away, pretending as if nothing had happened. Gulping, he flattened his hair, pacing around to take a seat on the plush bed. Armin stood there, almost frozen, not knowing what to do. Inching closer, the blonde sat down next to him, eyes cast upwards – the question burning in his mind. Jean purposefully avoided his gaze, instead lifting a hand to gently run through soft locks. "I need to go." Standing up, the light brunette smiled softly – the action not meeting his eyes.

"W-What?" Armin's face fell slightly as he opened to mouth to continue. Instead, Jean just walked across, wrapping strong arms around his waist, breathing in heavily. Armin blinked, confused but curious, needing answers. "Jean-!" But the other just let go immediately, grabbing his jacket and leaving. The sound of feet hit the stairs as the front door slammed, the others sportsmanship being useful in such a situation. Rushing over to the window, the blonde frowned as he saw the retreating figure of his boyfriend running down the street.

Something was wrong.

* * *

Lining the balls up in a perfectly straight line, Jean focused on the goal, the familiar texture of Astroturf under foot comforting. Licking his lips, he took a few paces back, calculating to what angle he needed to hit the footballs to score. Closing his eyes he breathed evenly, the wind gently brushing the hair against his forehead – a soft whistling in the distance. Releasing the pent up breath, his eyes flicked open; determination burning within ochre orbs. Gliding forward, he allowed his heart to rule over his head as he followed his instincts. The collision of his boots made a resounding thump as it came into contact with the plastic ball – the strength behind it forcing the object to rise in the air, curling against the wind patterns – smashing against the goal posts, bouncing off to the sidelines. Growling slightly at his miss, the boy continued from one ball to the other – needing the sense of scoring for his own personal freedom.

A soft noise was heard from behind him and he spun around – on edge from not having realised he was being watched. Marco just stood a few paces behind him, dressed in practice shorts and a jersey. The freckled boy watched Jean intently, eyes not giving anything away as a smile floated across his lips.

"You sure are terrible. I'm glad you're goalie." The light comment surged comfort through the other's body and he faltered slightly, wanting to blurt everything out but his throat closing in a protective mechanism way. His face dropped unconsciously and Marco's eyebrows furrowed at the familiarity of the situation. Strolling over, he raised a hand to lightly press against Jean's cheek. "You look awful."

The light brunette blinked slowly, opening his mouth as he grasped for the words that were getting stuck in his oesophagus. "I had a dream."

Marco's face instantly hardened as he let out a little "ohh." Biting a lip delicately, he clasped Jean's hand in his own, leading them off the playing field. He had known Jean for his whole life, having met the boy in kindergarten when they were kids. Jean was the new kid who was brash and loud – and who stood up for Marco, a boy he didn't even know in an instant. Since then they had been friends ever since, both of them having qualities that the other needed.

Leading them to Jean's dorm, silence filled the air – Marco understanding fully what was meant. He wasn't the best friend for nothing. Unlocking the door, he sat the boy down on his bed and opened the windows – allowing a breeze to float into the room; giving them both the room to breathe. Turning on the kettle, he leant against the wall waiting for Jean to talk. He would talk. They could sit here for hours but eventually Kirstein would talk. He couldn't not.

"I had a dream. About _him_." Jean stared down at his lap, fingers twitching nervously. Marco hummed softly watching the other closely as he began to make the tea. The light brunette licked his lips a couple more times before standing up abruptly, sitting on the windowsill instead – eyes cast deeply across the court. "About that cupboard. That fuckin' cupboard." His voice was a mere whisper but Marco caught onto the words, sitting down on the floor by Jean's legs.

Jean's fists clenched as he glared angrily out of the window. Why was his past continuing to haunt him? "I'm done with him Marco. I'm so fuckin' done. I moved out for a reason. But I can't seem to forget..." Shutting his eyes he rested his head lightly against the wall – the soft chatter of college life surrounding him. He wasn't a kid anymore. He wasn't controlled by his Father anymore. And he didn't have to deal with his past anymore.

Marco quietly sipped his tea, the words echoing in his mind as he stood up, resting a hand against his best friends shoulder.  
"You're doing well though Jean. How long has it been since the last nightmare? Two months? That's an achievement all in itself. You're doing well."

Dull eyes re-opened to meet those of Marco's; as a slight tear escaped from his eyes. He was so fuckin' done.

* * *

A hum escaped from Marco's throat as he made his way to the familiar coffee shop, headphones in. He'd left Jean alone after their talk – the other falling asleep haphazardly on the windowsill. It had been an effort and a half to shut the window to protect the other, but Jean's face looked tired and he knew that the other needed to sleep. And he seemed comfortable. From previous knowledge, he'd only known Jean to have nightmares when sleeping somewhere unfamiliar or when stressed out. Which led to the question: where was Jean sleeping last night? And he had the perfect idea where.

Opening the coffee shop door, the freckled boy removed his headphones, smiling friendlily at the customers who turned their heads to see who had made the doorbell jingle. Strolling up to the counter, he removed gloves and rubbed his hands against each other – the friction quickly warming them up.

Armin turned around to face the next customer; eyes furrowing at the familiar person. Wasn't he a friend of Jean's? Marco just smiled gently down at the blonde, ordering his favourite tea. As he went to pay he leant a little closer.  
"Hey, I'm Marco! Jean's friend. I need to talk to you later about him. I'll sit in that corner over there." He motioned to the plush leather seat that sat invitingly by the window. "Can I speak to you when your shift is over? And here: a tip." He dropped the coins in Armin's outstretched hand before smiling once again and leaving – the blonde baffled.

* * *

Armin sat down in the seat opposite the freckled boy and crossed his legs, feeling anxious.  
"What did you want to speak to me about...?" He swallowed nervously and fiddled with his zip on his coat.

Marco leant forward invitingly – not ever being one to look intimidating. Nor did he want to give off a bad first impression. "You're the one dating Jean right? You can deny it, but I know Jean. You've seriously given him the butterflies recently." A light laughter escaped soft lips. "Jean slept round yours last night didn't he? Did you notice anything...different this morning?"

Armin's cheeks heated up and he nodded.  
"Uh yeah...it's been like three weeks or something? I'm not sure...uh...He kinda freaked out this morning and bolted, I'm not sure what happened..." His voice sounded innocent and a little confused, not understanding where the brunette was going.

Marco just exhaled a little, reclining in the chair as he looked outside the window – the low light covering his freckles.  
"I've know Jean for over ten years now. He's...amazing on the outside. But inside; he's a little messed up. If you really like him – don't break his heart. For me okay? Because you beat me to his heart." Marco smiled sadly before running a hand over his forehead.  
"Let's start at the beginning. Jean's father is a police officer. His mother died when he was seven. Jean...didn't have the best childhood. His Father was a really good detective, solving crimes constantly and getting praise from everyone. You think that'd mean he's a good guy right?" Marco's voice cracked slightly at the memories.  
"But he wasn't. That guy was rotten at the core. Every son wants to be like his Father right? I know that I wanted to be like my Dad when I was younger. Even if he just worked in a supermarket – my Dad was my hero. What was your Dad's job?" He looked up at Armin, their eyes connecting.

Armin had sad eye's, he had stolen Jeans heart from Marco...? He felt guilty for it and he sighed softly.  
"My dad was a nurse in a hospital...He's why I like biology so much..." Armin sat comfortably on the chair with his legs tucked underneath him, listening to the other teenager's saddened voice.

Marco nodded lightly, talking a sip from the mug before him.  
"Exactly. So parents are role-models right? But what happens when your role-models aren't someone you should idolise? I'm guessing you don't know this but Jean has claustrophobia. He rarely shows it but when it does..." The boy's voice trailed off slightly. "You'll know it when you see it. So back to Jean's Dad: you're glad you won't have the opportunity to meet him. He looks respectable. He speaks as if he is respectable. But he's a wolf in sheep's clothing. He sees an opportunity and he takes it. So what do you do when your son acts up; showing fear at something you believe is so menial? You try to make them overcome that fear. Usually when you grow up, we overcome childhood nightmares because we realise that the monsters don't live under our beds. But Jean never overcame that because he never had the chance to. His Father..." the dark haired boys turned bitter. "His Father wasn't good news. You want to know why Jean's so claustrophobic. Because his Father enforced that upon him despite trying to make it go the other way. Your kid's what, five? What monster locks their kid in a tiny cupboard for hours on end in the belief that it will help them? What monster kid leaves their kid crying there, begging to be let out in the name of justice?" Marco turned quiet; leaving Armin in shock as he breathed out – trying to control his anger at the injustice of it all.  
"His Father understood the law. But he knew the weaknesses in the law. He knew the ways to overcome things that aren't allowed in the way that it won't be noticed. No kid deserves to be hit. No kid deserves to be locked up. No kid deserves to be traumatised like that." He allowed the words to sink in – awaiting the blonde's reaction.

Armin licked his lips and spoke quietly.  
"His dad really did that...?" He frowned "That's wrong. That's so...So wrong... Parents are supposed to help their kids not scare them even more." He was shaking in anger a little, feeling protective of his brunette.

Marco just nodded in suit.  
"I know. Jean's the bravest guy I know. He's overcome so many things in his life but I first noticed something was wrong when we were younger – when he refused to play hide and seek. It's all child's play right? But anyone could see he was distressed. It got worse, the older he got. You can't just run away when your Dad's a police officer? He can get a manhunt for you – to find his darling son he's oh so worried about." Sarcasm floated from the other's mouth. "But he's getting over it slowly. I keep tabs on him. But today..." Marco raised his eyebrows delicately. "Today he remembered. And he remembered in front of you. Which leads me to this: I'm not Jean's boyfriend. I've tried but I'm not. I'm the best friend and I'll forever play the dutiful part of a best friend. But I can't be around forever. At the end of the day, I've got to get a move on with my own life and I can't be here for Jean. But you can. You can allow him to fall in love with you and forget what he should forget. You can allow him to feel safe and normal and ultimately breathe. So I need you to talk to him about it."

Nodding Armin smiled weakly.  
"I understand Marco... I'm so sorry you had to share his fear along with Jean... I'm even sorrier that Jean ever had to go through it..." He licked his dry lips, "How do I go about telling him I know though...?"

"Call him. Face-to-face will just make him panic because it's not something he's proud of. He detests his weak nature. I think that's why he loves soccer so much. Because on the field he's free. He doesn't belong to anyone and he can do his thing. I'm sorry to upset you: but he won't tell you on his own. I just needed to give you both the right push in direction. "Marco smiled softly, standing up. "It was a pleasure to meet you; perhaps I'll see you again sometime but in better circumstances?" Tapping the blonde on the shoulder, he took his leave, leaving Armin there sitting with what felt like the world on his shoulders.

* * *

Armin nodded and watched the dark haired boy leave, sighing as he felt his heart speed up. He quickly typed in Jean's number with nimble fingertips and sat quietly. As soon as the phone got picked up he spoke: "Jean... We need to talk..."

Sitting upright, the other pressed his phone tightly against his ear, worry infiltrating his body. The call was unexpected and the words that left his boyfriends lips sent a dooming feeling to spread through his body.  
"Okay?"

"Uh... Gosh I don't know how to put this... Uh... Your friend Marco came and spoke to me at work..." Armin bit his lip "He told me some stuff..." A little sigh left his lips, he had got over the hard part now and he felt worry lift off his shoulders.

Silence took over the phone as Jean processed the information, betrayal stabbing his chest as he knew what was about to happen. "If you have something to say, spit it the fuckin' out." The boys voice was cold.

"I know what happened with you and your Dad, Jean...I'm really, really sorry for what happened honestly...But why didn't you tell me? You know you can trust me baby..." He didn't quite understand why Jean was getting so grumpy about him just wanting to discuss his family and he frowned.

"Did you ever think I didn't _want_ to talk to you about it? That's private information Armin. I don't see you spewing shit out about your family. What did you want me to say?! Hey: be my boyfriend! I have a fuckin' abusive Dad and I'm scared of small places. I can't breathe and I'm stupid and my Mom fuckin' killed herself. Is that what you wanted?!" His voice began to rise; anger surging through him. "Is that what you wanted Armin? Is that fuckin' it? Well whoop-de-fuckin'-do I've said it! Are you happy now? I bet you never even liked me. I bet it was all Jaeger's doing. Because you know what: I'm allowed to not share information with people. I'm allowed to keep secrets!"

Armin felt tears rise in his eyes "I didn't want that Jean no..." Armin stood and left the cafe, sniffling he spoke again. "I don't know what you're going through Jean but you have to understand that I'm here for you! It's not my fault that your Dad did that so don't you dare yell at me for it or God help you Jean Kirchstein."

"Or what? You'll break up with me?" A dry laugh bubbled up from within the elder's throat. "Don't kid me Armin. You break up with me and you've got no-one. I can get a girl any time. But you can't. Don't call me again." Snapping his phone shut, Jean punched the wall – swearing loudly. Gritting his teeth he breathed heavily – chest feeling constricted. Grabbing his jacket, he stormed out of the building.

* * *

**I'd like to say we're sorry for such an angsty chapter but the truth is we're not hehheheh**

**and neither are we sorry for the cliffhanger~;3**

**Alrighty so 5 reviews again and you lucky little things will find out~ **

**x Leather-And-Chocolate x x EarlGreyQueen x**


	6. Chapter 6

"Don't forget; next lesson your sketchbooks need to be submitted, with at least two pages completed to a high standard. Find something inspiring and capture it."

The words from Eren's lecturer were practically burned into his mind; the instructions whirling around to only cause more frustration and annoyance. The brunette usually just doodled Armin's face when the other wasn't looking, or focused on inanimate objects. He'd never felt the need to be inspired by something that's beauty could only be captured on paper.

Sighing loudly, he ran a hand through messy locks checking his phone for any new messages. None. Since Kirschstein had appeared in Armin's life, the boys best friend was spending less and less time with him; obviously preferring to spend the time with his _boyfriend_. The words dripped of Eren's tongue thickly – the term of address to his soccer nemesis still unfamiliar. There was nothing appealing about horse boy that Eren could see – so why was Armin head over heels in love with him? He grumbled slightly under his breath as he entered his favourite coffee shop; seeing the familiar blonde mop of hair at the counter. Scanning his eyes briefly over the café he was a little surprised to not see Kirschstein. Maybe they weren't working out…? Previously hope would have surged through him, but instead his throat felt dry as the thought of it being his fault crept into his mind. No. If any problems between the two were Eren's fault then obviously they weren't meant to be together. Simple.

Strolling over to the counter, he waved briefly at Armin who disappeared to the back, struggling to carry the trays left from previous customers. Instead: he was faced with Sasha, her eyes wide with excitement at the prospect of serving the food. Browsing, he hummed lightly before ordering a simple hot chocolate. Usually Armin gave him a discount but anyone else would make him pay full charge so there was no point buying anything extra. Grabbing his drink, the brunette walked over to a spare table, pulling out his art equipment in the process just in case anything caught his attention. Curling into the plush leather armchair, he drunk the chocolaty goodness quickly browsing over how menial everything was. Every day the same people came to the same place to order the same thing. It was all so repetitious. But Eren liked that. He liked to have some structure in his life. Closing his eyes he sighed softly, leaning back to just take in the world through his senses, the coffee scent strong but comforting.

The doorbell jingled, the golden bells ringing against each other in a chorus of welcome. Eren focussed on the light footsteps of whoever entered the shop, imagining what sort of person they were. The shoes were relatively noiseless unless you were specifically focussing on them, suggesting the person moved in a lithe manner and were small enough to travel gracefully.

"Large macchiato." A strong voice cut through Eren's mental processes, the voice quiet yet authoritive as if used to being listened to without trying. Green orbs flicked open, travelling instinctively to the counter to see who the new arrival was. Dressed in fitted leather trousers, an oversized black sweater and ankle boots, Eren's eyebrow arched curiously; apparently having never noticed this person before. Said person reached out for their beverage, turning round to also look for a place to sit. Black hair parted expertly, as tired eyes scanned the room, briefly meeting Eren's staring gaze. Grey eyes quickly looked away – instead moving towards a spare chair, the stranger sitting down eloquently. Eren felt his eyes get dragged with every movement of the other – realising he was being rude but not caring. This guy was…weird. Blinking, the brunette noticed the dark haired boy unzipping a bag, pulling out a golden acoustic guitar in the process. Interest captured him and he subconsciously leaned forward to get a better look, feeling his heart speed up in the process. Was this was inspiration felt like? Instinctively he grabbed his sketchbook, turning the rough pages quickly to copy the soft movements on the other – lead scratching the paper. As Eren glared at the paper in pure concentration, a small smile teased the end of the other boy's lips who plugged in headphones, aimlessly plucking at the strings of his instrument.

A good hour later, Eren sat up straighter, his back clicking in protest in the process. Groaning, he stretched feeling the muscles pop from having been strained for so long in such a precarious position. Glancing down at the piece of paper – he felt a surge of pride travel through his chest at the sketch of the mysterious boy, the light pencil marks tracing his lithe and gentle physique as he stroked the guitar fondly. It was better than any sketch of Armin for sure! A grin made its way to Eren's face, feeling giddy at having created such a different and interesting drawing.

A low attention seeking cough was heard and Eren's head snapped up – eyes immediately connecting with those of narrow steel grey. An outstretched hand pressed the coffee cup firmly against the brunette's chest as his model stood before him.  
"Next time I'll charge you."  
With that, the boy swiftly turned around – a cold breeze rushing through the shop as he left. Eren's mouth had opened slightly, confusion taking over him. Looking down at what was placed in his hand, a shiver of excitement spread through his stomach at the paper cup belonging to the other boy, a number decorating the scrawled handwriting of Sasha's ordering skills. Levi, huh?

* * *

Extending back, Eren rested gratefully against the headboard of his bed – a deep sigh emitting its way from the depths of his lungs. Having arrived back not much had happened. Armin had locked himself away in his bedroom for one reason or another – which Mikasa was currently looking into. Probably boyfriend problems, or whatever. Which led him onto the thought of the Levi guy from earlier. There was something captivating about his presence which drew Eren to him; wanting to discover what secrets lay beneath the surface. And he really was chuffed at the quick sketch of the other – eager to find out what other masterpieces he could create when given more time and more materials to work with.

Nonchalantly he messed around with his cell phone, a crappy piece of technology that could just about receive calls and send text messages. He really needed to invest in a better one but working was effort and something Eren was altogether not interested in. Of course he'd have to get a job eventually but currently he was happy enough just sitting there and thinking about what possible life events could occur to set him on his path in life. The cup was like the elephant in the room, something unimportant and menial yet something he couldn't stop thinking about. His gaze kept getting dragged across the numbers until he was sure he'd most likely memorised them – yet something deep inside him holding him back. What is Levi was only messing around with him? What if Eren did ask for him to be his model for Art, but the guy rejected him? Then his once in a life inspiration would be knocked down and the brunette would have no idea how to tackle his project.

Huffing loudly, the boy rolled over; squeezing the pillow tightly against his face. Why was he being such a loser? Determination surged through his body as he exhaled deeply, before sitting up abruptly. Grabbing his phone he quickly typed in the numbers, pressing the phone against his ear nervously. The phone rang a couple of times – the repetitious noise increasing the worry building up in his chest. What if Levi hadn't even given him the right number?

"Hello." A cool voice slid through the receiver making Eren jump, his voice catching slightly.

"H-Hi! Levi...?"

Silence just filled the response, before a quiet snicker was heard.

"You that shitty brat from the coffee shop?"

The brunette gulped slightly, before nodding – momentarily forgetting that the other couldn't see his actions.

"Uh...yeah? I'm Eren. Sorry about earlier...I just...you were really distracting." The brunette internally punched himself in the face for sounding like such a creeper, biting his lip slightly awaiting the response.

"Hm. Meet me tomorrow outside Costa – my lecture ends at 4pm."

And with that the phone clicked shut – Levi having hung up. Eren blinked a couple of times, glancing at the phone in slight confusion. So...did that mean he had agreed? Or at least wanted to know what Eren was doing? The brunette sighed loudly, the other's cold and blunt attitude intriguing him too much. Groaning, he rolled over – pulling his duvet over his head in an attempt to block out the world and cry at how miserably pathetic he was being over everything.

* * *

The screeching of an high pitch alarm clock made Eren wake up abruptly, wiping the drool off his cheek quickly as bleary eyes attempted to recognise his surroundings – the wisps of sleep dragging him back to his fantasy world. Clamping a hand down roughly on the shrilling machine, he yawned loudly, scratching the back of his hair messily feeling the morning grogginess return. Well, if you could call it morning. It was already 11am – one of Eren's favourite days off meaning he had hours before he had to do anything. Technically, he guessed he really should have been practicing soccer but ehh – he was good already and their team only beat Kirstein's anyway. To that coward of a team they seemed like freakin' demons, yet in comparison to the more professional neighbouring teams – they were just prey.

Crawling out of bed, the brunette stretched again, the sudden cold air causing goose bumps to appear on his exposed flesh, dressed only in boxers. Knowing everyone would be out anyway, Eren made his way to the kitchen; browsing the cupboards for any form of breakfast. Contented with some toast, the boy turned on the television, lounging on the sofa languidly brushing any crumbs onto the floor. Mikasa got really stress whenever she found the boys leaving food around the house of furniture. He hummed softly, flicking over to some reality show content with just lying there and focussing on whatever celebrity lifestyles these individuals had.

* * *

Hours passed by and soon enough the brunette was fresh out of the shower, attempting to control his messy locks as best he could. Dressed in simply denim jeans and a hoodie, Eren locked up slightly nervous with his official meeting with Levi. His sketchbook and pencils were jammed into a rucksack and they bounced slightly every time he moved; the skip in his step apparent. Checking his cell, he swore lightly as he realised he was behind schedule. His pace quickened up, the soft chill of the winter air slowly travelled up his limbs making him walk stiffly. The cafe was in sight and the brunette furrowed his eyebrows, seeing a small figure hunched up by the neighbouring wall – was that Levi? Hurrying over he saw his suspicions were confirmed, the dark haired boy standing there stiffly, arms crossed tightly as a scarf covered his lower face. Grey eyes flicked up at the appearance of Eren, and the brunette felt a goofy smile cover his face that the other actually turned up. Levi straightened up immediately, nodding towards the door.

"Get in. It's fuckin' freezing out here."

Eren's brows rose slightly but he didn't argue, instead opening the door and entering, eyes scanning around to the new coffee shop he'd never visited before. Despite primarily selling the same items – it had a completely different layout compared to Armin's; the walls a soft cream with a contrasting deep ochre skirting board and wooden panelled floor. A sharp pain spread through the brunette's shoulders and he hissed loudly, turning to glare at the owner of the travelling fist, before his eyes widened. Levi was really short. He'd never noticed it before, seeing as he'd been sitting the last time they met. But with the other male standing behind him, he couldn't help but notice how much he had to look down at the other to connect their gazes. Levi, glared back – sensing something had changed in the other before barging past going up to the counter instead, mumbling something incoherent under his breath. Eren just watched him, slightly offended at the other's attitude. Didn't Levi want to meet him in the first place? Why was he being such a bitch about it?

Like a puppy to his master, Eren dutifully followed Levi down to the seating area, the coffee shop giving off a rustic feel as soft music played from speakers – the quiet chatter of the customers not overwhelming like Armin's. He could understand why people like Levi preferred it. Sitting down, he looked up at Levi who extended the chair more gracefully, sitting down before crossing his legs eloquently, taking a sip of the piping hot coffee without flinching. The other's eyes flicked up from behind the mug; the gaze almost challenging. Feeling his throat get dry, Eren licked his lips, removing his gaze quickly feeling uncomfortable. The silence fed between the awkward atmosphere created between the two before finally the black haired male placed his mug down, the resounding crack of the porcelain on the table making Eren jump.

"So what were you doing yesterday?" The older male looked to the side, in a failed attempt to look uninterested as he unconsciously bit his lip. Eren just perked up at the instigated conversation, quickly pulling out his sketchbook to show the other.

"I'm studying Art and I'm meant to be getting inspiration from a person to draw. But I sort of suck and I need to get my grades good this year because otherwise I'm in serious trouble of getting chucked off the course entirely and-"

"I didn't ask for your fucking life story, cut to the chase."

The bluntness of the other's voice made Eren recoil, hurt flashing across his eyes from the comment. He was only answering the question, Jesus! Hesitating slightly, the brunette instead pushed his sketchbook across, hoping the drawing itself would get across his message.

"You were interesting and I drew you."

Levi's slender fingers pulled the book towards him, eyes scanning across the drawing of himself, eyebrows furrowing slightly as he took in his appearance. Eren just stayed silent in the process, not wanting to make the other angry before he stated his proposition. A few minutes later the male handed back the book, eyes meeting those of Eren's, nodding firmly in appreciation.

"It's good."

Appreciation surged through the brunette's chest, the warmth travelling up his neck to produce a cute little smile, the sudden reaction making Levi's face frown in confusion. It had simply been a compliment. Feeling flustered, Levi quickly covered his face with hands, staring hard at the ground in an attempt to not let his emotions get through. Eren meanwhile just grinned like a doofus, leaning forward excitedly.

"So, so! You like? I've never drawn something so good y'know? So I was wondering – do you want to be my model for this project? It would just consist of you sitting or something and letting me draw you, but you're just really...aaaah."

Levi glanced up at this, eyebrow arching at the suggestion. Uncrossing his legs, he allowed the information to process, Eren staring keenly up at him. If it were possible – he'd seen a tail practically wagging from that boy. Tch.

"Sure. Just don't make me look ugly. I don't care if I look ugly in real life; butter me up brat. Otherwise I'm not wasting my time with you." He sighed softly, meeting Eren's eyes gently, the threat not serious. The brunette just nodded eagerly, quickly scribbling down some information on a napkin and handing it over.

"So I have to fill at least two pages by Friday. That's okay because I've already done one page and if you've got the time, I can squeeze in another. But this semester is about inspiration in general so I'm going to need you long term. Is that okay? I wouldn't make you do anything weird, like nudes, unless you want to do nudes but then, uh I've never done life drawing before so..." Eren's cheeks reddened at the prospect, his words catching on each other at seeing the other naked. Levi just smirked in return, his words sneaking out like a low drawl.

"Cute. I bet you're still a virgin. I don't usually go for your type but you're amusing."

"Wh-What?" The sudden comment put the brunette off-guard, emerald eyes reflecting Levi's lewd smirk. His heart beat increased and his palms suddenly felt sweaty – as if he was a piece of meat the other was eyeing up.

"Now was much as I'd like to make fun of your non-existence sex life, I'm free this evening if you want to come over for some practice. My course is pretty much full time and I have a lot of coursework to be doing; so don't expect me to be playing around waiting for you. You have to work around my schedule. I also work part-time, so don't bother me when I'm busy. I'm a senior by the way. And from looking at your clothes and the fact you're already falling behind on work: I can securely guess you're a freshman who spends all his time going to parties and getting shit-faced. Well tough luck brat, I'm older than you so do what I say." And with that, Levi stood up, his white jeans darkening in the low light of the afternoon as he prepared to leave. As he made his way to the door, he glanced over his shoulder, silently summoning the other to follow him. Eren quickly rushed up, nearly tripping over in the process as he followed his senior.

* * *

**/EVIL LAUGHS**

**filler chapter for you all uvu**

**We're just starting on the next Jearmin chapter for you guys and we hope that Sexy Ice king Levi makes up for it**

**Also~ This Riren fic will be continued on Staceys account here- ~LeatherAndChocolateCosplay - If you are of course, still interested in these babies~**

**x LeatherAndChocolate x x EarlGreyQueen x**


End file.
